Over 100 yarn containing bobbins may be associated with a circular knitting machine. When cotton yarn is employed for forming the knitted fabric, the fiber waste generated by the yarn guides, yarn feeders and other components of the knitting machine and creel, and set adrift in the ambient air, is of a substantial amount. The amount of such fiber waste tends to steadily increase as the operating speeds of the knitting machines increase. Once the fiber waste has become airborne, it tends to settle upon the yarn feeders, yarn guides and the knitting mechanism of the knitting machine, and even upon adjoining machines. This causes yarn breakage, degradation of the knitted fabric, and other problems.
Various kinds of devices have heretofore been proposed for removing fiber waste generated from knitting machinery. The majority of the prior devices employ either a motor driven fan or an air blower to blow the fiber waste away. It has also been proposed to provide a cover about each knitting machine, and to install an exhaust duct near the machine so that the machine operator may gather the fiber waste and introduce it into the exhaust duct.
The assignee of the present invention has heretofore developed several systems for the collection and removal of fiber waste. For example, the fiber waste collector disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 3-119439, which is now pending, includes a filter means for attracting the fiber waste generated from the vicinity of the knitting section (yarn carrier, sinker, sinker cap and needle system) of a knitting machine, or from the yarn feeder, yarn guide, end breakage detectors and other devices mounted thereon. Similarly, the system disclosed in pending Japanese Patent Application No. 3-116850 includes filter means for attracting fiber waste from the creel stand and yarn bobbins associated with the knitting machine. Even when the circular knitting machine and/or creel stand are provided with suction means for removing fiber waste from the filters, the suction means in many instances is not capable of completely removing the fiber waste from the filters, particularly if such fiber waste contains grease or the like.